The Dark Side of the Moon
by EeveeAlchemist
Summary: "Bidoof, What happened to Eevee?" Bidoof gave me a crestfallen look. "Oh, Vulpix, I'm so sorry..We didnt find her. And we couldnt get inside the cave to look either.." That was all the proof I needed. My partner, my best friend, was gone for good.
1. Prologue

**Yeah, two Fanfictions on my first day. But my friend wouldn't stop bothering me until I posted this one. This was the first story I ever wrote. Please dont judge me too harshly; I hope its not too bad. This is a pokemon mystery dungeon fanfiction. Enjoy! Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.**

* * *

The Dark Side of the Moon

Prologue

"Vulpix, run!"

The walls were crumbling around us as we fought the vicious outlaw. The cave was going to collapse at any moment, and we knew it. But we couldn't just leave this Pokemon here to die, even though he was evil. We had tried to persuade him to leave, but it just made him angrier, and he had started to attack. Now we were all fighting for our lives. "No!" I shouted back, dodging another blast. "I wont leave you!"

"Vulpix, there is absolutely no way we can both get out in time! Get going, NOW!"

I looked around quickly and surveyed my surroundings. The cave was crumbling, the outlaw (A Darkrai, and a freaking _strong_ one) was throwing one attack after another at my partner, Eevee. She was dodging each one and doing her best to fight back. But a normal type against a dark type that could also melt into the walls was not the best match up ever. Then I looked around for exits, and flattened my ears in horror and dismay. They were all blocked. All except for one that had a small indentation that I might have been able to squeeze through if I was lucky. "I couldn't if I wanted to, Eevee, all of the exits are blocked!"

Eevee stopped attacking briefly and looked around at the blocked exits. Then she sighed and turned to face me, determination and sadness in her gaze. "Alright Vulpix. Promise me that you'll lead our exploration team well."

I stared at her. "Eevee, what are you tal-"

Before I had a chance to finish my question, a bright light filled the area and blinded me. Dang it_, Eevee! _I thought. _Stop using Flash when I'm right next to you! _Then I cried out as I was lifted off of my feet by a flash of blue light. _She's using Psychic to? Where did she even learn that!_ Then, as the light faded, I was thrown toward one of the exit caves. I never did find out if I could have fit through that crevice in the exit or not, because I was blasted right through the rocks that blocked the exit. My body screamed in protest and pain. Then I heard an explosion. Still flying through the air, I looked back to see the cave collapsing right in front of me. Then I hit the ground with a _thud,_ and everything went black.

* * *

When I woke up, I was back at Wigglytuff's Guild, surrounded by the guild members. As I sat up, they all started murmuring to each other, casting me wary glances. Raising my head as much as I could, I looked around for Eevee. She wasn't there. A voice suddenly sounded from behind me. "Yup yup, move out of the way everyone! Let me talk to the poor thing, yup! Give her some air!"

The crowd parted a little to reveal my best friend from the guild, Bidoof, trying to make his way over to me. "Bidoof, whats going on..?" My voice was soft and groggy, so I figured I must have been out for quite a while.

"I'm so glad you're okay, Vulpix, yup!" Bidoof was as cheery as ever. "We were worried when your team didn't come back, so we went out to look for you. We found you outside Dark Side Cave out cold. We couldn't get into the cave, everything was blocked, yup."

I was so scared to ask my next question, but I needed to know. "Bidoof," I began, my voice was shaky. "Where's Eevee?"

Bidoof suddenly looked down, his cheerful gaze switching rapidly to a crestfallen state. "Oh Vulpix, I'm really sorry. We didn't find her, we couldn't get inside the cave to look either. I'm so sorry.."

That was all the proof I needed. I burst into tears and buried my head into the ground. The other guild members backed up, their gazes saddened, letting me and Bidoof be alone in the middle of the circle. I wasn't aware of anything, except for the one thought churning inside my head. My partner, my best friend, was gone for good.

* * *

**Alright, thats the prologue. Shall I continue?**


	2. Chapter 1

**Okay! Thank you to Irisgarden779 for reviewing! I'll make sure to have my chapters up! Oh, right. I wont be updating on every other weekend, due to me kinda being on here in secret from my dad. So whenever I go to see him on every other weekend, I wont be updating. **

* * *

Chapter 1

**Six Months later..**

I sighed tiredly and dragged myself out of my nest. Sharpedo Bluff was a beautiful sight this morning. The sunrise shone over the vast ocean, making the water below sparkle. Since my partner disappeared, I hadn't really paid much attention to the view; it brought back too many memories. Now I found myself staring out at it. It looked so beautiful.. I shook my head, waking myself from the trance. _Focus on the task at hand, Vulpix._ I stretched, took one last look at the sea, and made my way out of Sharpedo Bluff and to the guild. Walking through the entrance, I heard many voices chattering excitedly. I went down to the lower level and waited until I was noticed, so I wasn't attacked for being mistaken as an intruder.

Sunflora noticed me first. She ran towards me, her expression so happy she looked like she would burst. Her eyes shone with excitement. "Vulpix, ohmygosh, its happening!"

I tried to stifle a laugh, Sunflora always talked so fast, it was hard to understand her. "Whoa, Sunflora, slow down!" I laughed. "Whats going on, I just got here."

"The Guild master has done it again! We're going on another expedition soon! Oh, I hope we get to meet another legendary Pokemon like Uxie-"

"Vulpix, friend! Come here please!"

Guild master_ Wigglytuff! _I was so glad to hear his voice. I had isolated myself from the guild for a long time after the incident at Dark Side Cave, too afraid to show my face at the guild. After I finally got the courage to come out and walk around town, I visited the guild again, but not nearly as often as I should have.

Happily, I trotted toward the Guild master's Chamber. I opened the door cheerfully and called, "Hiya Guild master Wi-"

I leaped back with a startled gasp, my sentence catching in my throat. Instead of the guild master standing there, it was Chatot, who was staring me down with his most evil glare. "Chatot! You scared me out of my fur!"

Chatot continued to glare as he beckoned with his wing, turning to the chamber door. "Come, Vulpix," He growled. "We need to talk."

* * *

**Alright! So thats chapter 1. **


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

As I walked warily after Chatot and into the Guildmaster's chamber, my mind whirled with millions of questions. What expedition? Where to? Whats it for? Who's going? Why does the Guildmaster want to see me privatly? Wigglytuff was sitting in his chair, his eyes wide open and staring at the wall. Chatot gave me the signal to wait, and stepped forward to address me to the Guildmaster. I happily obliged.

"Ahem,"began Chatot. "Guildmaster, I have brought Vulpix as you have requested!"

Wigglytuff didn't move, didn't make a sound. His gaze didn't waver, as if he couldn't hear or see anything that was going on. I tried to stifle my laughter with difficulty; I knew what was happening. The great Guildmaster Wigglytuff was asleep with his eyes wide open..again. Chatot must have figured it out as well, for he groaned and flapped his wings twice. "Guildmaster!"

Wigglytuff blinked. His expression at first showed confusion, then turned into realization and dissapointment. "Aww Chatot, did you have to wake me up? I was having a really good dream.."

Chatot sighed and repeated his message. Wigglytuff beckoned me over to him, then spoke.

"Vulpix, I have ordered this expedition for a very special purpose that I think you will find to be most helpful to your investigation. I started this expedition for you."

_Wait, what?_ After the incident at the cave, I had made it my mission to track down the Darkrai that we had been trying to defeat, and finish what we had started. I wanted revenge. But why would Wigglytuff help me? I was totally bewildered. "Why?"

"This expedition is to Midnight Forest, where the last known sighting of Darkrai was." Wigglytuff explained. "I've ordered this trip so we can help you find him, and if necessary, defeat him."

My heart was pounding. This was my chance. I could finally bring down the evil piece of scum that had killed my partner. And I wasn't about to let it go. I was going to get my revenge.


	4. Chapter 3

**So So So sorry that its taken so long for me to update! I've had a really bad case of writers block, I promise i'm trying to get rid of it!**

* * *

Chapter 3

"Alright, everyone! The Guildmaster has finally decided who will be joining us on this expedition!"

Chatot held up a piece of paper. Many things were scribbled on it in a messy manner. The guild members all stared at it. They hardly dared to breathe in their anticipation. I smiled. This was just like my first expedition with Eevee. Excitement bubbled up inside me. I couldn't wait to see who was coming!

"Now," Chatot began, "You all know that this expedition is to Midnight Forest, and that Vulpix will be coming along with us.

There are many rumors of a dark Pokemon being sighted there. We shall find out! Now, to the members who will be joining us! First up is.. Sunflora!"

Sunflora squealed with delight. She jumped forward and stood in line next to Chatot, obviously trying to contain her growing excitement. I laughed inwardly. _She hasn't changed a bit._

"Next up is.. Chimecho!"

_Good choice._ Chimecho was Sunflora's room mate and best friend. She floated gracefully up to Sunflora, and they both exchanged excited smiles.

Chatot continued. "Now come on up.. Oh, this is a surprise, two expeditions in a row! Congratulations, Bidoof!"

The Guildmembers parted to reveal a stunned looking Bidoof staring at Chatot. "Y-y-y-you're _serious?"_

Wigglytuff gave him a friendly smile. "Of course, Bidoof! You've proved yourself time and time again, its only natural that you should be able to come!"

Bidoof gave the guildmaster a slight smile and took his place beside Chimecho. Chatot took the list again and read the next name. "Hmm.. okay, the next two members to be joining us are Loudred and Corphish!"

Corphish took his place in line without a word.

Loudred, however, had many rather loud things to say.

"OH YEAH! WHOO! I KNEW IT! ITS ONLY NATURAL THAT I WOULD MAKE IT IN! YES! WOOT!"

Everyone else by now had either rolled their eyes or covered their ears. Loudred was always known to be loud and obnoxious, but this was way over the top. After Loudred had calmed down, Chatot continued with the list.

"Alright, the last member to be joining us is.. Croagunk!"

Croagunk peered up and over his cauldron. He nodded slightly, then dissapeared from view. Everyone stared at the place where he dissapeared for a minute. Croagunk was more of a shopkeeper than an explorer, but he was still part of the guild, and powerful when he wanted to be. He rarely ever left his cauldron. We never have found out how it works but we all know its pretty special. Diglett looked up at Wigglytuff. "Sir, what about me?"

Dugtrio went over to Diglett. "Don't worry, we're staying here as well. Someone has to look after this guild while the others are away!"

Diglett's eyes lit up a little, and he nodded and backed up. Chatot flapped his wings twice to get everyone's attention. Once everyone was looking at him, he spoke.

"All right! We move out in the morning! Spend the rest of today getting all the supplies you need! Now remember.."

I grinned and jumped into the mass of guild members, reciting the morning cheers. I remembered them well, remembered the good times me and Eevee had had in our apprenticing at the guild. Everyone shouted the cheers as one.

"One! Don't shirk word!

"Two! Run away and pay!"

"Three! Smiles go for miles!"

Chatot smiled a rare smile. "Okay, Pokemon, time to get to work!"

"Hooray!"

* * *

**Woot! Lets get this started! Those of you waiting on Pure, I'm working on it, give me a little while please! I'm writing a short story to get my mind back on it! And to cure the writers block! Read and Review!**


	5. Chapter 4

**Im So sorry for the long waits! Its just how I am, I cant stay onto a set schedule. I update when I'm ready, sorry guys!**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon**

* * *

Chapter 4

The day was beautiful, perfect for shopping in Treasure Town. The sun was shining down brightly and the town was alive with smiles and friendly chatter. Many of the guild members were around, either shopping, training at the dojo, or engaging friendly conversation with the local Pokemon. All the shops were in business. The Kecleon Market, run by the Kecleon brothers, were selling special items that day. Chansey's Daycare was as busy as ever; she had her hands full. It was very lively.

My first stop was the Kecleon market. As I approached the counter, the brothers turned and smiled at me. "Hello!" They called. "Welcome to the Kecleon shop!"They both gave me warm grins, and I smiled.

"I see you guys are as busy as ever!" I grinned. They laughed, and we got down to business. The first brother, the green one, stepped to the side and revealed his merchandise for the day. The items varied from cheap iron thorns to apples to special seeds, which are very expensive, even for the top exploration teams. I scanned the rows of different objects. I was looking for one item in particular. One that would help me beat that mangy, good for nothing.. _Oh! That's it! The item I need! _"Kecleon! I'm ready to make a purchase!"

Both brothers ran over. "How can we be of assistance?"

I ordered a few various items that I knew I would need, then leaned in close to the Kecleon. I put on the best serious face I could and made my eyes cold and sincere. "Now listen very closely. I want you two to give me the most powerful vile seed you have."

In unison, both Kecleon drew back, their eyes wide. Vile seeds were very rare, very expensive, and very deadly. Only the best of the best used them. If mistakenly eaten, it will make your body immediately weaken and leave you defenseless, making you an easy target for your opponent. However, if you know how to use it correctly and are very precise, you can sometimes make your enemy eat it, and the effects go to them. Its very cruel, but it helps to win. I tried not to use them as often as possible, but this time I just couldn't pass it up.

The older Kecleon shook his head and looked at me hard. I knew that I would have to have a very good reason for buying something so lethal, and at my rescue team's rank, which was Gold. After staring at me for some time, Kecleon spoke. "Now, Vulpix..," he began, a little shaken. "There must be a very good explanation for this.. You know that I don't like giving these things to inexperienced explorers such as your-!"

My fur bristled in anger. I couldn't believe him! He just called me inexperienced, after all my partner and I had done! How could he have forgotten that our team saved the world not once, but twice! That Eevee and I were unbeatable? I slammed my forepaw down on the counter furiously. My eyes starting to blaze, I yowled at the Kecleon brothers. "How dare you! How _dare_ you call my team inexperienced? I may not be the strongest team in the world, but I assure you that I am very responsible, and you know it! I need this seed to right something that was wrong! That Darkrai isn't going to defeat itself! So help me! Hand it over!"

When I mentioned Darkrai, the brothers froze and looked at me in shock. News had spread about the accident, Darkrai's scheme, my partner going missing. Everyone in Treasure Town knew by now. They all did their best to help out when they could. The Kecleon Brothers knew about Darkrai, but obviously hadn't thought about it when I had asked for the seed. I instantly felt sorry for them and guilty for yelling. All of the locals were staring in my direction. It was quite embarrassing.

The younger brother was the first to recover. He pulled the other Kecleon aside and started to converse with him in hushed whispers. They talked for several minutes, then turned back to me. They apologized, sold me my items, including the seed, and gently requested that I leave the market for the time being. I didn't blame them. I muttered, "Sorry," then backed out of the store. Everyone stared at me. I walked on with my head low, my ears back. That was very stupid of me to yell. To have to obtain an item that way.

I passed by storage and put away a few things. Then I hurried to Sharpedo Bluff and sorted my items, making sure I had everything. Then I curled up in my nest and watched the sunset. _Tomorrow.._ I thought. _Tomorrow is when it all begins. Tomorrow I will journey on one of my most dangerous missions yet. _My thoughts made me drift into an unsettled sleep, where nightmares of darkness waited for me, pulling me into their grasp.

* * *

**I thought it was fun to view an item from a pokemon's point of view. How they would feel about using it. Read and review!**


	6. Chapter 5

**Yikes. I've had this posted for what, almost three weeks now? And I just now realized how badly I messed it up. Sorry about that guys. Here's just chapter five. ^^'**

* * *

Chapter 5

I woke before dawn and forced myself to shakily stand. It was chilly that morning, making my fur stand on end because of the cold air. Nightmares had kept me awake all night. Though they were more like memories. I had been having many nightmares lately, most of them having to deal with a dark creature haunting me. But the most reoccurring one was the cave in, only in more detail than I could even remember myself. The rockfall was more frightening. Whenever the bright light from Flash occurred, it looked as though a shadow could be seen for a brief second, sipping across the room. Then a giant rock would fall towards me, and I would wake up, panting. I had no idea why the dreams were becoming so much more frequent and vivid, and I blamed it on my nerves and the upcoming journey.

Grabbing my treasure bag, I started to head over to the guild. Chatot had suggested that we get an early start in order to avoid attracting a lot of attention. I am not a morning pokemon. Not only is it hard to get up and extremely annoying, but it looks like everything is gone. Treasure Town is vacant, not a trace of laughter or even customers. The streets are empty, and the darkness seemed to take over. It was just weird.

The guild, however, was a busy place at all times, even in the early morning. Especially this morning. Even coming up the long line of stairs to the entrance, I could sense the monstrous amount of activity and excitement pulsing through the corridors of the building. I knew why they were all excited, and it made me smile. The last time the guild had been on an expedition was when I was an apprentice, nearly two years ago. An expedition was rare, and a huge deal. It takes a ton of work, but it gives everyone a chance to explore unseen territories. And with new territories uncovered, there was the chance of finding a treasure beyond imagine. It was no wonder that everyone was up so early without complaint.

Upon entering the guild, I saw that many of the apprentices were already packed up and ready to go. Sunflora was pacing eagerly up and down the hallway that lead to the bedrooms, conversing with an ecstatic Chimecho. Bidoof was sorting through his pack, making sure that he had everything he needed. Loudred was chatting rather loudly with Corphish, and Croagunk was sitting at his cauldron, as usual. Chatot made his way around the meeting room, making suggestions and preparations.

For a while, I sat down in the corner and watched the others. Sorting through my treasure bag, I made sure I had plenty of food and various attack items. You never know what exactly you're gonna need on a mission, whether it be small or huge. Various type disadvantages needed to be kept in mind, as well as how powerful your opponent is. Then you needed to consider what your opponent specializes in, attack, speed, or other skills. Then you needed to bring the correct items to help you gain the advantage over those skills and types, to help ensure a victory. Preparing for an expedition took consideration, which is why we were all given a day to prepare.

After sorting my items, I looked around to see Chatot starting for me. Standing up quickly, I trotted over to him, slinging the bag over my shoulder. Chatot nodded to me and beckoned for me to follow him with a silent wave of his wing. It was strange.. usually he addressed his actions or instructions with words. Then I listened and noticed that the room had gone silent. Quickly, I looked at the apprentices over my shoulder. Everyone was averting their eyes to everywhere but me, except for Bidoof. He gave me a friendly smile, but his eyes were clouded over. I was confused, suddenly worried. Had I done something wrong? Hurrying after Chatot, I leaned down and hissed, "What happened? Has something gone wrong?"

Chatot continued to walk without a word towards Wigglytuff's chamber. I followed, fear starting to grow in my chest. I hated it when I knew something was wrong, but no one would tell me what. Everything seemed fine before I got there. So what had suddenly happened to make everything go off?

Chatot led me into the chamber and closed the door. He then spoke. "Guildmaster. I have fetched Vulpix as you have requested."

Fetched me? Uh oh.. I looked up at Wigglytuff and saw that his eyes had uncertainty in them. Wigglytuff _never_ looked like that. I flattened my ears. "What's going on?"

Chatot answered for Wigglytuff. "We went earlier to the Darkside Cave, just to be sure we could safely enter. There were rumors of mysterious stones there. We did find two fire stones and a dawn stone.. but we also found something else. Something that you will be quite.. interested in." He reached behind his wing and pulled out.. a piece of pink cloth. The edges were rough and jagged, as if it had been torn off of something. I didn't understand. Why would I be so interested in a piece of ripped cloth?

Chatot seemed to notice my confusion, because he pressed me. "Take a closer look." He handed the cloth to me.

I took it and narrowed my eyes to examine it better. It looked exactly the same. Just an ordinary piece of.. a Pecha Scarf? That set off alarms in my head. A Pecha Scarf.. at the entrance to Darkside Cave.. ripped to shreds..

Quickly, I dropped the cloth. Then I dropped to my belly and began to paw the cloth. It couldn't be. It just couldn't. But after a few minutes, I found what I was after. A small tuft of brown and white fur. Just to be sure, I breathed in the scent. It was indeed very familiar. I backed up and looked at Wigglytuff with wide eyes. He nodded.

This was the same Pecha scarf our team had gotten in our Exploration Starter Kit. The same one that I had given to Eevee on our first mission. The same one that she always wore. The same one that she had been wearing when she had been crushed by the rockfall.


	7. Chapter 6

**I am so sorry for not updating on this! I've had a really bad case of writers block for this story, but I promise I'm not dropping it! I have every intention of finishing it! Sorry for the short chapter, I know it sucks. But Like I said, writers block.. Sorry guys. I really am. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or anything to do with it.**

* * *

Chapter 6

You know, I really do love going on explorations and traveling and everything. But when the Pokemon you're traveling with decide to get into a heated argument that can take up to three hours to settle, it gets really annoying. Really fast. We had barely set foot outside the guild when Sunflora and Loudred started going at it.

Again.

For the third time since I had arrived at the guild this morning.

Trying to block out the sounds of them debating was absolutely worthless. Loudred never gets quiet enough to not hear him over anything, and Sunflora makes it a challenge to raise her voice so that it's even louder than Loudreds is. I really wouldn't have been surprised if they had woken Treasure Town with their racket. To be honest, I wouldn't have been surprised if they had woken up a town across the sea.

"Loudred, you are the loudest Pokemon in the entire world! You can never be quiet!"

"CAN TOO!"

"Can not!"

"CAN TOO!"

"Can not!"

I sighed in exasperation and ran up ahead to where Chatot and the Guildmaster were leading the group. Quickly falling into step beside them, I glanced over at Chatot. From the look of him, I could tell he was about ready to blow his top. Quickly, I engaged in a quick conversation to distract him. He's quite frightening when he gets angry! "So.." I began casually. "What are the groups for traveling to base? Or is there not any yet?"

"I haven't decided yet." His calm voice was forced. Not a good sign. "Do you have some in mind?"

I cringed and started firing off ideas. "Well, personally I'd like to travel with Bidoof. I also know that Corphish and Croagunk partner up pretty well. So that just leaves Chime-"

I was cut off by a fierce scream of rage from behind me. Spinning around, I caught a quick glance of something flying towards Sunflora. That something was Loudred's fist. Sunflora was furious, being knocked back in front of everyone. She started countering with Razor Leafs and Bullet Seeds. Wigglytuff ran back to calm the fighting.

After watching for a minute, I leaned down with a small smirk and whispered into Chatot's ear, "I also think that Sunflora and Loudred should be seperated for this trip."

Chatot's reply came back as a small hiss, "I couldn't agree more."

After a few more hours of traveling (The argument had stopped by the end of the first, thank Arceus), we came to a stop in front of Moonrise Cavern. This was one of the many obstacles we would have to overcome on our way to Midnight Forest, our final destination. Chatot pushed his way through the crowd and flapped his wings rapidly to get everyone's attention. He spoke.

"Ahem! I will now announce the groups that will travel together on our way to the camp sight. We will expect to meet in two days time, at the entrance to Apple Grove. Any one party who is not there at the expected time will be searched for by either the guildmaster or I. Unless you are injured seriously, do not expect to receive a warm welcome. Also, any items you find on your journies will be thoroughly inspected upon arrival. Are there any questions?"

The group stared at him in silence, so Chatot continued. "Very well. Without further ado, here are the groups. First, Chimecho, Sunflora, and Corphish!"

Sunflora and Chimecho giggled and whispered to each other in obvious glee. It was quite apparent that they had been expecting this. Corphish stood by, quietly. That was really strange. He was usually very chatty..

Chatot cleared his throat and the whispers stopped. He looked at us again. "The next group will consist of Croagunk and Loudred."

The two simply nodded at each other. Loudred was still a little angered at the fact that he had been arguing with Sunflora eariler, whereas Croagunk really didn't care. He never really cared where he was put.

Bidoof piped up from behind me, his voice carrying a slight bit of worry. "Uh, Chatot? What about me?"

I grinned. "What do you think, silly? You're coming with me, of course!"

That cheered him up considerably. I smiled as he trotted over to my side, his eyes brightening. I really liked traveling with him. Bidoof was one of the very first to accept Eevee and I to the guild when we first joined.

Chatot cleared his throat as a call for order. "You all have your instructions. We expect to see you in two days time. Make sure you aren't late. Move out!"

Everyone cheered. "Hooray!"

* * *

**Review? Please? Again, I really am sorry..**

**Oh, right. Are there any Code Lyoko fans out there reading this? I'm just wondering, I'm starting to get really into the series.**


	8. Chapter 7

**Sick once again today, so I updated on this story this time! Chapter is short, but its going to lead to some new characters and start the co - story writing with my friend on Fanfiction, Spy102! So, Enjoy everyone!**

* * *

Chapter 7

"Duck! Dodge! Now, attack! No, _attack!"_

I launched myself into battle once more, firing a flamethrower at the nearby Zubat, knocking it out instantly. Quickly rolling to the side to dodge an oncoming Supersonic from another nearby bat, I tried to push Bidoof to use at least one attack to help me out a little. We had entered a monster house, of all things, right when we had finished a big fight. I could feel my legs starting to give out already, and Bidoof was looking tired himself. But I had done most of the fighting. I was trying to coax him to use _something_, but he wouldn't budge from his state of cowering. "Come on! Do something!"

"Uh.. Uh…"

I tried hard not to take out my frustration too hard on the poor sap that was my opponent. Don't get me wrong, I loved the guy, but Bidoof could _not_ fight to save his life. No way. Tensely, I glanced around at my enemies. Weird, they were all Zubat and Golbat for some odd reason..

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Bidoof finally make a move. He lunged at one of the Golbats, starting to use a Tackle. He hit the Golbat head on, making me grin ecstatically. Now this was more like it.

To keep up our good fortune, hopefully, I let out a Flamethrower, scorching two nearby unsuspecting opponents. They hit the ground with a thud. I flinched slightly. That must have hurt..

But they weren't done yet.

Three Zubat surrounded Bidoof, cornering him into the wall of the cave. He tried to chase them off with another Tackle, but they simply dodged. Together, all three started to attack him with a barrage of Supersonic Attacks. I made a furious lunge towards him, but was stopped by a Wing Attack to the legs. I crashed into the ground, trying not to let out a pathetic whimper of pain. My back leg hurt so much, and I could tell that I wasn't going to be able to put any weight on it for a while. Regardless, my friend was in trouble.

I stood on my three good legs and shakily made my way over to Bidoof, limping as quickly as I could. With a quick Ember, I made my way through and stood in front of the Pokemon, blocking the attacks from hitting him. My energy started to drain from my body, and my legs shook with weakness.

Bidoof must have seen this, because he leapt upwards and actually charged all three Zubat at once. He used Scratch and Tackle, managing to take one of them down completely and damage another pretty well. I was proud of him. But the other one was still at full health, and managed to beat Bidoof down eventually. He hit the wall hard, falling unconscious.

Fortuantely, that gave me enough time to come behind the Zubat and give it a vicious Faint Attack, knocking it out almost instantly. I landed on my feet, but my legs instantly buckled as soon as they hit the ground. I layed there, my vision wavering. Dimly, I was aware of a shadow looming over my body, but I couldn't tell who it was. Another enemy? Someone passing through?

My eyes began to close, and I barely felt it when someone lifted me from the ground. Being carried by two strong arms, I let myself fall into darkness.

* * *

**Review! Until next time!**


	9. Chapter 8

**Again. I'm incredibly sorry about how long it takes me to update on my stories. But thats beside the point. New chapter everyone! This begins my co - writing with Spy102. More on his part will be explained later. He came up with putting Haxorus and Haunter in though, along with their side of the story. Hope I did a good job Spy ^^**

**I do not own Pokemon.**

* * *

Chapter 8

"Vulpix.."

A voice.. Someone was calling me. It was soft though, so soft that I could barely make out what it was saying. Who was it..?

My eyes opened and my legs pulled my body into a standing position. I could barely see, everything was so foggy and white. My head was spinning, and I couldn't think straight. Nothing was clear, I couldn't focus either. Every muscle in my body screamed at me to lay down, to rest, to fall back asleep. I obeyed them, starting to drift off again. Maybe all I needed was a bit more rest..

"Vulpix. Come on. Wake up."

The voice again. It was a little clearer this time. It sounded so familiar. I groggily opened my eyes again, staying in the comfortable position I was in, lying down. Whiteness still shrouded my vision. I couldn't see. Was this a dream? I had my eyes open, but there was nothing around me.. I could barely move as well, my movements were dragged out. This had to be a dream.

"Come on.. Wake up."

I knew the one that used this voice. I knew them.. But I was tired, oh, so tired.. I couldn't place the name. It felt almost wrong that I didn't know this voice. I felt guilty for it. And I couldn't figure out why. All I wanted was to sleep.

"Wake up!"

It was commanding me now. The voice was no longer telling me, it was commanding. The sharpness in it made my body jump, and sudden darkness overtook me. I could tell I was returning to consciousness But that voice.. I had to know.. Who was it?

* * *

~Vulpix's POV~

"Vulpix! Hey!"

"Eevee.." A groan rose from the bottom of my throat as I forced my sleepy eyes open. Shadows filled the enclosed structure around me, and I recognized the cave like dampness of the air as I breathed. I was laying on a damp and moist bed of moss. Someone must have made it while I was still unconscious. Bidoof stood over me, his worried expression turning to one of relief as I blinked up at him. There didn't seem to be any injuries on him, which relieved me considerably. At least he was okay. I could tell that my leg was sprained, it still really hurt and someone had wrapped it into a fixed position with leaves and vines. But the questions still arose, who? And where were we?

"So. You're finally awake."

A deep voice answered me from the far end of the cave. It was too dark for me to make out the user of the voice, but I could tell that it wasn't anyone I knew. The shadow that it gave off was all I could see to even remotely begin to decipher who the Pokemon was. It was tall, and muscular, I could tell that much from the silhouette. It started to come nearer, and I could feel its footsteps rattling the ground around us. I struggled up to my paws, fur bristling slightly at the thought of something so big, and the possibility of having to fight it if things didn't turn out well. The opponent was big. I got that much. If I could trip him, get him down on his knees, then I'd get the advantage..

"Relax. I'm not going to attack you." The Pokemon came out of the shadows. It was a Haxorus. Though this one was different somehow. Its claws seemed longer, and it seemed more muscular than any other Haxorus I'd ever seen. But the most strange thing about it was its skin color. A regular Haxorus had a dull yellow shell and red tusks. This one was much darker. Its body was a black color, and its shell a dark brown. I had heard of certain different colored Pokemon before, but this was my first time meeting one. Eevee had called them.. Glittery? Something like that. But I didn't see how they could be anything like Glittery, I mean, this Pokemon was black..

The Haxorus smirked at me. "Are you confused or something? You seem lost." He flicked his tail, eyes gleaming with amusement. I simply glared back.

Bidoof spoke up. "Um, Sir, I was wondering, if you possibly knew where we are? Or how we got here?" I could tell that he was only trying to break the tension, but I was also curious to know. How had we gotten here? Where was here?

The Haxorus started to answer, when there was a voice from behind us. "I got the berries, sir." The voice was drawn out in a creepy hiss. It was also a bit high, and mysterious. I whirled around to see the newcomer. It had a purple body, and it levitated in midair. It had big red eyes and a sly grin on its face. This Pokemon was a Haunter. The way it talked to the Haxorus, they must have been friends, or partners.

I was once again driven out of my thoughts as a small leaf package containing many sorts of berries was dropped at my feet. The Haunter looked at me. "These are for you and your friend. Eat them, then we'll talk."

Bidoof, being the little bottomless pit, started digging into his share. I ate much more slowly, glancing at the other two from time to time. Something about them wasn't right to me. They looked to friendly to be wild Pokemon, and they hadn't attacked us at all. But they were too suspicious for me to fully trust them. They were obviously sent from somewhere, and they were working together. But what were they sent to do? And what part did we have in it?

I hadn't yet finished my berries when the two approached us again. Bidoof had fallen into a bit of an uneasy slumber, so I shook him awake. He snapped awake almost immediately, so I knew that he must have just snoozed off. That also made me realize that I wasn't the only one that didn't trust the other two. Bidoof was usually friendly to everyone, carefree, and just happy in general. When he was like this, anyone could tell that something was off.

Haxorus seemed to notice this, for he gave a long sigh. "Will you both just relax? We aren't going to hurt either of you. All we want is to offer you two a way back to your guild."

Now they had my attention. "How did you know we were from a guild?"

Haunter pulled out a pouch from behind his back. More specifically, my Wonder Bag. Placed on top were our guild badges. "We found these around your necks. That obviously means you're from a guild, correct? You guys are Explorers. And from the looks of it, a long way away from home."

He was right, of course. We were obviously nowhere near the campsite, or the guild for that matter. "So where are we? You never answered our question."

Haxorus nodded. "We're inside a cave near a place where we were exploring ourselves. You guys seemed pretty battered up when we found you, so we took you here and set up camp for the night." So they were the ones that found us. I was grateful for it. But that didn't mean I trusted them.

Haunter sneered. "We have a request of you two. There's a place not far from here. There's supposed to be a great treasure there, and we've set out to find it. However, we've been defeated after many attempts to access the chamber."

So he wanted us to go off course from our mission and get this treasure for them. Sure, it would be a chance to explore uncharted territory, but we were already very late, and Chatot was surely upset as it is.. Besides, we had just been defeated anyway. We needed time to recover.

I wasn't the one to answer, however. Bidoof spoke up before I could utter one syllable. "We're on a mission, we can't just leave it, nope!" Good, we were both on the same page.

Haxorus shook his head. "I'm sorry to break it to you, but we're not going to give you much of a choice. And you don't have much of a choice anyway. If you don't help us out, we're not going to help you out. You guys need to get back to your guild. We need this treasure. All we're asking is for you two to explore the place and tell us if there really is a treasure or not. In return, we're going to help you guys get home. We'll start in the morning."

Haxorus turned and walked into the shadows of the cave. Haunter gave us another cackle and followed. I was shocked. We were going to be forced into this mission, weren't we? It was true that we didn't know where we were. But we could find our own way home, right..?

Bidoof looked at me, eyes wide. "Are we really going to do this, Vulpix..?"

I didn't move, only considered my options for the third time. I didn't trust them. But for some reason they completely trusted us to find whatever this treasure was for them. And it was true that we needed all the help we could get. I sighed and laid down. "Yes Bidoof. We don't have a choice. We're going on this mission. If we don't, we're going to lose our only lead to get back to Wigglytuff. We have to do this."

* * *

**I hope I suceeded in making this chapter a bit longer than the others, I really tried to. Review please!**


End file.
